Day: March 31, 2024

ROME — Rallying from a winter-long bout of respiratory problems, Pope Francis led some 60,000 people in Easter celebrations Sunday and made a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.

Francis presided over Easter Sunday Mass in a flower-decked St. Peter’s Square and then delivered a heartfelt prayer for peace in his annual roundup of global crises. In between, he made several loops around the piazza in his popemobile, greeting well-wishers.

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“Peace is never made with weapons, but with outstretched hands and open hearts,” Francis said from the loggia overlooking the square, to applause from the wind-swept crowd below.

Francis appeared in good form, despite having celebrated the 2½-hour nighttime Easter Vigil just hours before. The pontiff, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, has been battling respiratory problems all winter and his full participation in Easter services was not entirely guaranteed, especially after he skipped the traditional Good Friday procession.

The Vatican said some 60,000 people attended the Mass, with more packing the Via della Conciliazione boulevard leading to the piazza. At the start of the service, a gust of wind knocked over a large religious icon on the altar just a few feet from the pope; ushers quickly righted it.

Easter Mass is one of the most important dates on the liturgical calendar, celebrating what the faithful believe was Jesus’ resurrection after his crucifixion. The Mass precedes the “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) blessing, in which the pope traditionally offers a laundry list of the threats afflicting humanity.

This year, Francis said his thoughts went particularly to people in Ukraine and Gaza and all those facing war, particularly the children who he said had “forgotten how to smile.”

“In calling for respect for the principles of international law, I express my hope for a general exchange of all prisoners between Russia and Ukraine: all for the sake of all!” he said.

He called for the “prompt” release of prisoners taken from Israel on Oct. 7, an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and for humanitarian access to reach Palestinians.

“Let us not allow the current hostilities to continue to have grave repercussions on the civil population, by now at the limit of its endurance, and above all on the children,” he said in a speech that also touched on the plight of Haitians, the Rohingya and victims of human trafficking.

For the past few weeks, Francis has generally avoided delivering long speeches to avoid the strain on his breathing. He ditched his Palm Sunday homily last week and decided at the last minute to stay home from the Good Friday procession at the Colosseum.

The Vatican said in a brief explanation that the decision was made to “conserve his health.”

The decision clearly paid off, as Francis was able to recite the prayers of the lengthy Saturday night Easter Vigil service, including administering the sacraments of baptism and First Communion to eight new Catholics, and preside over Easter Sunday Mass and deliver his speech.

Francis wasn’t the only leader whose mere presence at Easter offered a reassuring sign of stability and normalcy.

In Britain, King Charles III joined the queen and other members of the royal family for an Easter service at Windsor Castle in his most significant public outing since he was diagnosed with cancer last month.

The monarch offered a cheery wave to spectators as he walked into St. George’s Chapel, and then spent time shaking hands and greeting well-wishers after the service. “You’re very brave to stand out here in the cold,” Charles told them.

But things were hardly normal in Jerusalem, where Easter Mass came and went at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Only a few dozen faithful attended the service as the Israel-Hamas war rages on in Gaza.

The medieval church in the Old City is the holy site where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected.

In years past, the church has been packed with worshippers and tourists. But the bloody conflict in Gaza, now into its sixth month, has seen a huge downturn in tourism and pilgrimages across Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The streets of the old city were also absent of Palestinian Christians from the West Bank, who normally flock to the city for Easter. Since the conflict erupted, Palestinian worshippers from the Israeli-occupied territory have needed special permission to cross checkpoints into Jerusalem.

In Iraq’s Nineveh Plains, where 10 years ago the Islamic State group killed and displaced thousands of minority Iraqis, hundreds of people celebrated Easter in a region that has had a Christian presence since around the time of Jesus. Iraq’s Christian community, which was once some 1.5 million, now numbers at most a few hundred thousand.

“We will definitely stick to this land and remain here until the last, and hope for a change,” said Nassar Mubarak, who attended Easter Mass at the Immaculate Conception church in Qaraqosh.

During his Easter Sunday sermon, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby delivered a message acknowledging the struggles King Charles and Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, as they both battle cancer. 

 “In each of our lives, there are moments which change us forever,” he said in the service held at Canterbury Cathedral in the English county of Kent. “We’ve watched and sympathized with and felt alongside the dignity of the King and the Princess of Wales, as they have talked of their cancer, and in doing so by their lack of selfishness, by their grace and their faith, boosted so many others.” 

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Both the King and Princess have said that they chose to share their own diagnoses publicly in part to support others facing the disease.  

King Charles was diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer during a recent treatment for an enlarged prostate. “His Majesty has chosen to share his diagnosis to prevent speculation and in the hope it may assist public understanding for all those around the world who are affected by cancer,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Feb. 5. Following his disclosure, the NHS reported a jump of over 50% in the number of visits to a webpage offering advice on the signs and symptoms of cancer.

On March 22, the Princess announced she had been diagnosed with cancer and is undergoing “preventative chemotherapy.” In a video message sharing the news, Kate offered support for all those whose lives have been touched by the disease.

“At this time, I am also thinking of all those whose lives have been affected by cancer. For everyone facing this disease, in whatever form, please do not lose faith or hope. You are not alone,” she said. 

King Charles attended Easter church service at St George’s Chapel Windsor on Sunday, along with his wife Queen Camilla, marking his first major public appearance since his cancer diagnosis was shared by Buckingham Palace. Kate, who first stepped back from royal responsibilities in January after undergoing a planned abdominal surgery, was expected to return to royal duties after Easter, though her return has been postponed until she is given medical clearance.

The Archbishop previously spoke out against the conspiracies that surrounded Kate’s absence from public life in an interview with Times Radio released on March 21, just a day before she shared the news of her diagnosis.

“We are obsessed with conspiracy and we have little sense of the humanity of those who are caught in the glare of the news,” Welby said when asked whether the conspiracy theories surrounding her public absence pointed to a moral issue. “It doesn’t matter who it is, people should be allowed to be ill, have an operation, whatever it is, and to live their lives in peace without everyone demanding that they prove something every other day.”

King Charles greeted the public after Easter church service at St George’s Chapel Windsor on Sunday, marking his first major public appearance since his cancer diagnosis was shared by Buckingham Palace on Feb. 5.

The King and his wife, Queen Camilla, waved to a crowd of onlookers outside the chapel, and chatted with the visitors after the service. They were joined by the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh—Prince Edward and Sophie—and their son, James, Earl of Wessex, along with the King’s sister, Princess Anne, who was joined by her husband, Sir Timothy Laurence. Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, were also in attendance.

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King Charles was diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer during a recent treatment for an enlarged prostate. He has continued to carry out many of his royal commitments in private, though he had temporarily paused public-facing duties at the advice of his doctors.  

Just a few days ago, the King spoke of his “great sadness” at missing the traditional Maundy Thursday service in a recorded audio message that was played at the service at Worcester Cathedral. Queen Camilla, who attended the service alone, has largely been solely carrying out public engagements that might otherwise fall on her husband.

The Easter service was a smaller affair than usual this year. Absent from the celebration were the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children. Catherine, the Princess of Wales, has been absent from public royal engagements since Christmas, after undergoing a planned abdominal surgery in January. On March 22, the Princess announced she had been diagnosed with cancer and is undergoing “preventative chemotherapy.”

In January, when it was first announced by Kensington Palace that Kate would be stepping back from royal duties, she was expected to return to royal duties after Easter, though her return has been postponed until she is given clearance by her doctors.